Technicolor

When I took these photos last month, I ran into an old friend on the bridge. I normally don't speak to people whenever I go on photo trips -- the less opportunities for awkward run-ins or questions about why I'm taking photos of outfits, the better. I was taken aback to see this friend because it had been years since we had seen each other, that I stammered through some lie about working on some landscape photography (which is kind of true?). 

I've been sitting on so many outfit posts from Georgia, and have had a difficult time putting them up because I am homesick for my old photo spots. Seeing these photos reminds me that I was very lucky to have a park basically all to myself in the mornings for three years.

credits - dress, nine west | shoes and scarf, target | jacket, aeropostale.

Back in focus

Confession time: I've feeling iffy on my Nikon DSLR camera for the last few months. Most of it is because with my model, the focus options  were really out of place on most of the settings I tried, making most of my photos pretty blurry. After spending lots of time trying to sharpen and correct a bunch of outfit photos, I was pretty much ready to call it quits on my camera and just go back to the point-and-shoot, thinking the problem was that my photography skills had disintegrated over the last few months. Turns out, the focus feature is a common problem with my model, and after finding a few how-to hacks to the settings, I think I am back in business! It's always rewarding to see photos reflect reality.

I've wanted to wear this outfit for months. It's bright and academic-ish, and perfect for campus and work. 

credits- dress, nine west | blouse, vintage thrift find | shoes, talbots | bag, stone mountain, thrift find | pocket watch necklace, waltham, heirloom.

Literal R.E.M.

Hat: Scala Pronto;

Top: H&M;

Shorts: Abercrombie & Fitch;

Bag: Fossil, thrifted;

Socks: Marshall's;

Shoes: Nine West, gift.

Oh boy, so I've been waiting to do this post forever and I'm so excited to tell you about it.

 I'm standing on hallowed ground in these pictures -- well, sacred for alternative rock lovers. The steeple behind me is where R.E.M. played their first show ever 30 years ago. The church used to be St. Mary's Episcopal, and at the time the band played and practiced songs there, it was already a dilapidated site and no longer used for church functions (more info here). What remains now is a beautiful Gothic-style steeple. R.E.M. formed in Athens and still has musical roots here -- they have band offices downtown and some members live around town.

So as a fan, I wanted to reflect some musical inspiration in my sartorial choices Saturday night. I decided what better way to pay tribute to a band than to wear an outfit inspired by one of their music videos? I dressed up with "Man on the Moon" in mind. Lots of black and white, and a straw hat. I took some liberties by making brown my standout color.

This shoot actually was difficult. The logistics of the steeple weren't easy -- it's surrounded by a parking lot and an apartment complex, so I've had to drive by several times during different times of the day to figure out when it wouldn't be as crowded either. Totally worth it, though.

This isn't my best outfit, but this one was the most fun to experiment with. If you are a longtime reader of this blog, then you'll know that I spend a lot of time in dresses and bright colors. But if there's anytime to try new things, it's the weekend. It was fun to try separates, and research R.E.M. videos and try to have what I wear be representative of their art. Who knows, I may do another daily style tribute again.

 Do you ever draw sartorial inspiration from bands and their music videos?

Oh I'm bound to go where there ain't no snow

 

 

Listening to: "In the Big Rock Candy Mountains," from the
"O, Brother Where Art Thou" soundtrack.

Purple blouse, Delia's;
Dress (worn as skirt), J. Crew;
Tights, Target;
Booties, Nine West, gift;
Monsho the turtle pin, thrifted;
Necklace (as bracelet), Aloha Stadium Swapmeet, Honolulu, HI;
Ring: Engagement ring;
Trenchcoat: Banana Republic.

I decided to play with color yesterday, but I'm not entirely sold on this particular palette. I wanted to style this J. Crew dress somehow but since I bought it, it's been hard for me to figure out because I usually don't wear pastels and I feel like it needs another pop of color and not a neutral. Still it was fun to wear because it felt cheerful.

About the accessories: you might be wondering why I am wearing my engagement ring on my right hand, middle finger. I haven't gotten it resized yet and right now it only fits that finger. I've gotten so used to it being there that I kind of just shrug it off anytime someone makes a mention of it. The necklace as bracelet brings back great memories of being in Hawaii on our honeymoon and traveling to the different booths at the Stadium marketplace. My turtle pin is my attempt to wear more brooches, and since I've tried to name all my animal jewelry, his name is Monsho.

I hope to experiment a little more with color and patterns this year. In what ways have you expanded your style, and what trends or ideas are you interested in trying?